Dry line marker



'March 14-, 1939. M. QVERCASH 2,150,609

I DRY LINE MARKER Filed June 22. 1957 Wm J4. @W

INVENTOR H IS ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 14, 1939 UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE 5 Claims.

My invention relates to the lining of tennis courts, football fields, etc. and includes among its objects and advantages the provision of an improved dry line marker.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. l is a top plan view of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view along the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view along the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view along the line 44 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view along the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

In the embodiment selected to illustrate my invention I make use of a hopper l0 mounted on two rear wheels 12 and a front wheel l4. To the hopper I 0 I connect a handle l6 for manipulation purposes, which handle is located on the central axis of the hopper in alignment with the front wheel I 4.

Specifically, the hopper l0 comprises two side walls [8 arranged in converging relation downwardly and two end walls 20 also arranged in converging relation in the same manner as the side walls. Referring to Fig. l, the lower edges of the side and end walls are so related as to provide a narrow slot 22 for the exit of comminuted material such as is commonly used for marking purposes.

In Fig. 3, I illustrate the side walls I8 as being shaped along their lower margins to provide opposed troughs 24 which slidably support a closure plate 26 of sufficient length to close the slot 22 and to project beyond the rear of the hopper, as illustrated in Fig. 2. Immediately above the closure plate 26 I mount a screen 28 which may have its marginal edges 36 Welded or otherwise attached to the side and end walls. In filling the hopper with lime or other material the closure plate 26 is pushed in for closing the slot 22, at which time the device may be moved from place to place without depositing the marking material.

For marking purposes, the closure plate 26 is pulled rearwardly for uncovering a portion of the slot 22, the degree of opening depending upon the amount of material to be deposited. I provide means for vibrating the hopper to shake the material through the screen. To this end, I attach a U-shaped bracket 32 to the rear end wall 26. The lower end of the handle I6 is bored to receive bolts 34, which bolts pass through openings in the bracket 22 and the rear wall 20. The handle l6 together with the bracket 32 is firmly clamped in position and fixedly connected with the hopper by merely tightening the nuts 36. The flanges 38 of the bracket 32 are provided with slots 40 for accommodating the axle 42 upon which the rear wheels l2 are mounted. The wheels l2 are fixedly connected with the axle 42. Flanges 38 project partly beyond the side walls l8 of the hopper, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and upon each flange I mount a small roller 44 arranged in pressure relation with its associated wheel 46 fixedly connected with the axle 42. In Fig. 5, I illustrate the roller 44 as comprising a sleeve 48 rotatably mounted on a bolt Ell having threaded relation at 52 with the flange 38. A look nut 54 is associated with the bolt to prevent turning thereof.

Referring to Fig. 4, the wheel 46 is notched about its periphery, as at 56, which notches are of such shape as to provide a plurality of curved projecting elements 58 cooperating with their associated roller 44 for vibrating the hopper. The slots 40 are of sufiicient length to accommodate the shaking action of the hopper imparted thereto through the medium of the wheels 46 and the rollers 44. The load of the rear end of the hopper It] is supported on the wheels 46. The projections 58 are of a gentle curvature so as to easily lift the hopper while the sleeves 48 rotate freely so that the shaking action imparted to the hopper offers little resistance to the movement of the marker across the field. I space the projections 58 closely so as to impart a rapid shaking action to the hopper, which effectively sifts the material through the screen in such a manner as to provide a continuous and uniform application of the material in the nature of a narrow band.

The front wheel [4 is rotatably mounted on a shaft 69 carried by the flanges 62 of a U-shaped bracket 64 having its bight 66 riveted to the front wall 26 at 68. The wheel i4 is located centrally of the hopper in alignment with the handle l6 so as to constitute a guide to the operator. The upper marginal areas of the side walls l8 and the end walls 20 may be bent to provide a strengthening bead l0. In Fig. 2, I illustrate the rear end of the closure plate 26 as being provided with an upturned flange 12 constituting a grip for manipulation purposes. Rear wall 2!] is shortened at it to accommodate the closure plate 26 while the front wall 26 is lengthened at 16 to constitute an abutment for the forward end of the plate. Walls l8 and 20 are of such angles to the vertical as to effectively localize the material being spread over the entire area of the screen 28. While the slots 40 loosely connect the rear end of the hopper with the axle, the

slots are closed at their endsso as to connect the axle with the flanges 38 to prevent accidental disconnection. The bottom of the hopper is spaced closely to the ground surface 18 so as to bring the delivery slot 22 as close as possible to the ground to prevent air currents from blowing the material to one side of the line to be marked.

Without further elaboration, the foregoing will so fully explain my invention that others may, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt the same for use under various conditions of service.

I claim:

1. A dry line marker comprising a hopper having a slot in its bottom, a wheel for supporting one end of the hopper, two wheels for supporting the opposite end of the hopper, an axle fixedly connected with said two wheels, a pair of notched wheels fixedly connected with said axle, and a pair of rollers connected with the hopper and having pressure relation with said notched wheels for imparting a vibratory action to the hopper when the axle is turned.

2. A dry line marker comprising a hopper having a slot in its bottom, a wheel for supporting one end of the hopper, two wheels for supporting theopposite end of the hopper, an axle fixedly connected with said two wheels, a pair of notched wheels fixedly connected with said axle, a pair of rollers connected with the hopper and having pressure relation with said notched wheels for imparting a vibratory action to the hopper when the axle is turned, and a screen extending across said slot.

3. A dry line marker comprising a hopper having a slot in its bottom, a wheel for supporting one end of the hopper, two wheels for supporting the opposite end of the hopper, an axle fixedly connected with said two wheels, a pair of notched wheels fixedly connected with said axle, a pair of rollers connected with the hopper and having pressure relation with said notched Wheels for imparting a vibratory action to the hopper when the axle is turned, a screen extending across said slot, said hopper having walls inclined to localize a marking powder over said screen, and a closure plate movably connected with the hopper for opening and closing said slot.

4. A dry line marker comprising a hopper having an opening in its bottom, a front supporting wheel attached to one end of the hopper, two rear supporting wheels, an axle fixedly connected with the supporting wheels, a bracket carried by the rear end of the hopper, said bracket being slotted to loosely receive the axle, notched wheels fixedly connected with the axle, and rollers carried by said bracket in pressure relation with said notched wheels for imparting vibratory movement to the hopper when the axle is turned.

5. A dry line marker comprising a hopper having an opening at its bottom, wheels for supporting the hopper, an axle fixedly connected with two of said wheels, a bracket fixedly connected with one end of the hopper and having a slot for loosely receiving the axle, notched wheel means fixedly connected with the axle, and roller means carried by said bracket and arranged in pressure relation with said notched wheel means for imparting vibratory movement to the hopper when the axle is turned.

WHITSON M. OVERCASH. 

